Life & Wellbeing
Life and wellbeing after coercive control: food, body image and confidence
Weight, appearance and food can become targets in an abusive relationship. In this series, Louise Sherwood, founder of Empowered Insights, shares what that was like and how she is rebuilding her health and confidence on her own terms.
Series by Louise Sherwood, Founder, Empowered Insights
Published 26 October 2026
Content note: these personal accounts talk about domestic abuse, coercive control and verbal abuse about weight, appearance and food. Support details are below.
Why this series is on Monj
Many people who come to Monj are thinking about their weight and health. For some, comments about their body or their eating were once used to control them. That history can shape how you feel about food, weight loss and asking for help.
Coercive control is a pattern of behaviour used to dominate someone, such as constant criticism, humiliation and monitoring. It is a criminal offence in England and Wales under section 76 of the Serious Crime Act 2015. The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 also names controlling or coercive behaviour and economic abuse in the legal definition of domestic abuse. These stories show how it can reach into everyday things like a meal, a snack or a look in the mirror.
Read the series
Part 1
When Your Abuser Weaponises Your Appearance: The Hidden Cruelty of Weight, Shame and Coercive Control
How an abuser used weight, looks and shame as weapons, and how the author began to see herself differently.
Read part 1 →Part 2
When Food Becomes a Tool of Control: The Hidden Side of Coercive Abuse
Criticism in the kitchen, secret eating and learning to choose what is on your plate again.
Read part 2 →Part 3
My Surviving Era: Reclaiming My Body, My Health and My Happiness After Abuse
Swimming, perimenopause, nutrition and finding support that encourages rather than shames.
Read part 3 →Part 4
From Surviving to Thriving: Finding Freedom in My Next Chapter
Small steps, progress that is not measured by a number, and trusting your own voice again.
Read part 4 →
About the author: Louise Sherwood
Founder, Empowered Insights
Louise Sherwood is the founder of Empowered Insights, a survivor-led organisation that educates people about domestic abuse, supports survivors and trains the professionals they turn to. Its Reconnect Project gives refurbished phones to survivors through refuge partners. This series is written from her own lived experience.
Louise's profileVisit empoweredinsights.co.ukLinkedInInstagramFacebookWhy Louise founded Empowered Insights
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Sources
These are personal accounts of lived experience, published on Monj with the author's permission. They are not medical or legal advice. If you are worried about your health, eating or weight, speak to your GP or a pharmacist. Monj is an independent price information service run by Medstack Ltd and does not sell, prescribe or supply medicines.
